This is a spot that feels like a little bar but is actually more like a casa with some food items…read more Here, they are big on pig and there are Iberico hams located on and around the bar for easy access. If you are vegan, coming here will only piss you off. In fact, a vegan in Madrid in general is ill-advised. The setting feels historic and rustic with exposed brick and stone that appears to be centuries old. They seem to make everything (both food and drink) behind that cramped bar which explains why most of their menu items are cold, pre-made, or easy to assemble from short lists of raw ingredients. This does not mean that anything is bad. It just means it is like producing charcuterie in a dorm room bar. A large number of items involve Iberico Ham and one of the barmen is constantly shaving off thin pieces for service. In fact the freebie snack they send out from the kitchen had some Iberico ham and Manchego cheese on it which was a really nice warm up of what to expect. Over the noonish lunch hour, I was the only tourist in the place surrounded by many locals that clearly know about this spot. I liked those odds for assuring me of a genuine authentic experience. It was an accurate predictor. I'm not the most experienced when it comes to true Spanish tapas but this seemed to be a very genuine depiction of what the locals look for in a rustic Iberico ham experience. And frankly, even if it wasn't I can't find anything to really complain about. It was a cool historic setting, there was ice-cold vermouth from a tap, and I spent an hour shoving local Morcilla (blood sausage) and Iberico pig parts into my pie hole for the better part of an hour. It was a great experience any way you choose to look at it.

Everything here was perfect: prices, quality of food, service and the authentic touch of Spain!…read more Gracias Sara!!!

I took the rabbit and my friend took the sirloin steak. Both were worthless. Rabbit really dry,…read moresirloin straight from freezer. I will not come to this place ever again.

A tapas bar with an emphasis on wine. This place is one of the nicer place in the area. Good tapas,…read morenice wine choice and nice atmosphere.

Averaging out one 5 star experience with one 1 star evening for a final 3 star rating. Our first…read moreexperience was our first day arriving in this neighborhood in Madrid after some time in Barcelona, and we arrived in early afternoon, sat on the patio and were greeted by a lovely waitress that took our order without issue. The gyozas and canelon were far more rich and delicious than we expected for a location picked on somewhat of a whim on a travel day, and we thought we would come back another night to experience more of the excellent cuisine. We came back on our last evening in Madrid to try to have a relaxing night with a bit more tapas and some drinks, and had a very different experience. We ordered two gin and tonics, in imperfect/completely awful Spanish I'm sure, and the waiter seemed somewhat confused but we were able to communicate and apologized (in Spanish) for our language issue when he returned with our correct drinks. We asked for menus (in perfect Spanish) and waited about 30 minutes for those while other tables received theirs and ordered food. A lovely part of Madrid is receiving a snack with your drinks in nearly all places- olives, boquerones, mánchego, tostas, jamón, etc. Here, we received gummy snacks in complete contrast to the ham dish we received the first day, and were the only table that had anything so absurd delivered to us. We could only take it as a mark as us being Americans as the rudeness continued throughout the evening, and never once was something like that delivered to our table before then. As Americans traveling in Spain, we have done our best with decent but imperfect Spanish in 4 cities over 17 days. We have had no issues and have been told on multiple occasions that we have done great with Spanish communications- whether gracious lies or truth is neither here nor there. We are fully aware we are visitors here and always try to be respectful, but this second experience with the rude waiter was too much to leave unmentioned. Let the gal working the first day run the night crowd, or teach this man some manners. Imperfect Spanish speakers beware of male waitstaff.

not good food or service - food didn't seem fresh and menu was not cohesive. limited vegetarian…read moreoptions as well

Food was incredible. Drinks were fantastic. Carlos was welcoming and made us feel at home. Highly…read morerecommended for anyone looking for Spanish food ... and bourbon that has been hard to find in Spain.

Was EXCELLENT! The staff was wonderful and kind. We were so well taken care of !…read more Mahalo

The shrimp at La Casa del Abuelo was melting in your mouth, really amazing, not like your usual…read moregarlic shrimp. It's served sizzling in a clay dish, a dish I actually first knew about from Mark Wiens, and it lives up to the hype. The sauce, perfect for dipping bread, was incredible, rich and full of flavor. This is clearly their famous signature dish, and it's easy to see why. A must-try in Madrid.

We went here for a late lunch, maybe 3 pm., after an exhausting day of walking and sightseeing…read moreMadrid. As we left Plaza Mayor, I spotted this popular restaurant. My wife and I sat in the back. It wasn't full, thankfully. It's a nice old restaurant that reeks with charm and history. The servers were real friendly. It had outdoor seating, but we stayed in the back to relax. We had 3 dishes., Gambas Al ajillo, Tortilla Español, a small one and Orejas (pig ears) à la plancha. They were all so good, perfectly seasoned and cooked well. The tortilla was creamy. The Gambas were garlicky...used my bread to sponge in the olive oil infused with garlic. The Orejas was tender and crispy at the same time. Food is sublime and service, first rate!

I'd had Casa Macareno on my list to try for a few years. I waited patiently as the staff seated…read moreothers who'd arrived after me, before being told I would have to sit on a stool at the narrow bar against the wall since I was solo. Service was slow; I ordered a tinto de verano and a water, and was approached again and had to ask several times. Then, staff were pushy about my ordering plates of food; no media ración or tapa-sized offerings. While trying to decide, I noticed lots of English speakers and direct asks for tips from adjacent guests. Only after I shared that I'd changed my mind about ordering lunch was I offered a complimentary dish of boiled potatoes with mayo (neither I nor any of the surrounding guests finished them)?! I couldn't pay and leave fast enough, though not before being shocked by the price: €8 (!). And yes, the tarjeta machine was set to ask for a tip (nope)! Too bad, as I'd heard good things about this spot and had excellent experiences elsewhere in the neighborhood/city during my month-long stay.

Very good food in a vibrant atmosphere. The staff is brusque but helpful (telling us not to order…read moremore because it would be too much food) (we listened, and they were right). The "false risotto" (orzo) with seafood is a particular highlight.

As I continue to work my way towards clearing my review queue of all the great places we visited in…read moreJanuary on our trip to Portugal (with a 4-day "layover" in Madrid on the way)... this place was definitely one of many highlights. I am glad I intentionally got there a few minutes before they reopened for dinner, as it was, as I had heard, not a very large place, and they do fill up quickly. So the best time to get there is definitely a little while before they open. The atmosphere is definitely... loud, but not *too* loud. It's busy, and a tiny bit cramped, but not wall-to-wall, and I loved that you could easily flag down staff at any time and order more food or drink, and it always arrived quickly. (I absolutely ordered both more food and more drink while I was here.) Food-wise - I just can't stress enough how good their tuna empanadas were. I'd heard they're most known for their fried cod, but they really shouldn't be. Don't get me wrong, their fried cod is quite good cod, super flaky, perfectly fried. Super filling, too. A little too salty, though - and a bit one-dimensionally "fried" flavor - I feel like it should have had tartar sauce, or hot sauce, or ideally both. They had, as far as I could tell, no condiments for it. (I suppose you could bring your own hot sauce?) The fried pork belly is also very good, also obviously *absurdly* filling (it's basically all fat). I certainly wouldn't eat it all the time (for my health), but I would strongly recommend trying it. But the empanadas... they're small, but at least as of January, were only 2 euro each. I could have eaten a dozen of them (we ordered a second round of empanadas). If I were ever back in Madrid, and assuming the menu hadn't completely changed, I'd probably skip the cod and just order a bunch of empanadas (or, I suppose, remember to bring my own hot sauce... and still order a bunch of empanadas. The empanadas could also have used hot sauce. Everything is better with hot sauce. :p) I'd definitely come back, though. They have a simple drink menu, but a wonderful one - notably, this was where I was formally introduced to the popular Spanish drink, tinto verano, an extremely crushable wine beverage with citrus soda, I would have never thought of as a good idea, but which I ordered a second one of before I left, and I'm not even a fan of citrus sodas. (Then again, I also imagine the citrus sodas in Spain are also probably slightly less full of junk than the American ones.) Went extremely well with the fried food. I also had a glass of the house vermouth, which wasn't the best *ever*, but it was solid enough, especially for how cheap it was.

Fun cafe to enjoy a late afternoon glass of wine with some yummy tapas. They offered some fantastic…read morewines by the glass and bottle - we landed on a lovely Albariño. The crisp minerality of the wine was a nice offset to the often greasy nature of croquettes and fried artichokes with ham. The service was friendly and welcoming and the patio seating offered some great people watching!

I would definitely come back for the duck confit and mango sauce toast. The combo of flavor is just…read moredelicious! The croqueta is good, but nothing special. I don't really like patatas bravas in general and this one is normal. What's cool is they give you a complimentary croqueta. Had I known this I wouldn't have ordered croquetas lol. They have English menu here.

Found this spot on Google and saw some decent reviews. Staying nearby so I decided to roll the dice…read moreand stop by. Greatest decision ever. My first tapas spot in Madrid! Did not disappoint. The main bartender, Ariel, from Paraguay was awesome! We definitely had a language barrier but I tried my best splanglish and it was an entertaining evening throughout! The owner speaks English, but he maintains the bottom floor and I was upstairs. Tried the huevos papa jamon iberico and it was enough to call it my dinner meal for the evening. Met another fellow American and we had great conversations throughout the evening. Can't complain, come here for the beer and wines and good eats!

Located just outside of Puerta de Sol. This is a great place to enjoy Espana tapas and a drink!…read more The tapa portions are very large: the small size anchovies, contains two pieces of bread with 5 white anchovy fillets, diced onions, green olives, drizzled with olive oil. For a savory entree, I recommend the oxtail stew: 10 pieces of delectable oxtails in a brown gravy sauce. This tasted more like a beef pot roast, rather than a tomato style gravy. The oxtails are paired with thick cut fries.

This spot was the one for our first Tapas dinner for this Madrid visit. Roomy inside with some…read moreoutdoor seating. Empty as we were early for dinner around 7 so we took a table outside. They do have a Sister location next door -difference is less Tapas and Paella is on the menu. We started with Sangria and the Alhambra house brew. The Beer was billed as an IPA but tasted more like an Ale-very good. The Sangria was a bit sweet and refreshing. Complimentary Manchego cheese was a nice touch. Our Server warned us that their Tapas are larger than the typical size and she wasn't kidding-more like Tapas on steroids. We started with the Goat Cheese with onion and blueberry sauce. I don't think I've had fried Goat cheese and this was delicious. Blueberry sauce takes it over the top. Tortilla Omelette (Spanish Omelette) was filled with eggs/onions-very good. Last Tapa was the Cured Iberian Loin. Again, big portion. The surprise was the flat chicken breast and peppers under the Loin. This one was ok. Decided to share the Rice with 1/2 Lobster. Sauce was tasty mixed with the Rice as well Lobster. Not much Lobster though. Service was excellent with our Server patiently answering all of our questions. They've been around for almost 100 years. Don't miss the Goat Cheese Tapa!